The Rural Voice, 2004-10, Page 57PERTH irtk
County Pork Producers NEWSLETTER' Thet Rural s by ded to Perth
County Pork Producers
cerss by the PCPPA
Pat Louwagie, President
519-393-6424
Some factors are beyond our control
Any opinions expressed herein may
not necessarily reflect the views of
the Perth County Pork Producers'
Association.
By Richard Smelski
The political atmosphere continues'
to increase pace as well as the
boundaries of political jurisdiction
keep expanding. No longer are
producers only vulnerable to the level
of production in their operation, but
also vulnerable to decisions at the
political boardroom tables locally,
provincially, nationally and
internationally.
The latest and most -debated
discussion is the U.S. Trade Action
claim against Canadian pig imports.
It appears that the U.S. Pork Council
is challenging Canadian imports
because of perceived subsidies as
well as dumping. Ontario Pork put on
a very informative meeting in
Toronto on September 14, 2004. The
initial statements were: no one is
saying that these trade actions are fair
or equitable - they are for the benefit
of the U.S. producers. The legal
process as well as the calculation
methods are biased and favour the
United States. Go figure. October 15-
23 will be some important dates to
receive the preliminary
determinations of injury; after that we
play defense. A lot of questions
remain, but the biggest cost will be
uncertainty.
How about our own local actions -
are we attuned to some township and
county regulations? Do I sense a
backpedaling that Provincial Nutrient
Management regulations might not
take precedence to the hordes of local
bylaws? Case in point - Huron -
Kinloss debate has tried to take
precedence in attempting to
supercede the provincial legislation.
You may feel removed, but it might
as well be your backyard because
precedence is being sought.
Where is the accountability and
business plan of the political field?
How do producers and suppliers
invest millions into a business
without some reassurance that the
whims of the day will not take
precedence? Perth Federation of
Agriculture put on a very valuable
day for "the politicians". It is my
opinion that one of the politicians'
biggest surprises was the investment
that farmers have. My guess is that
for every employee "in town" there is
a $50,000 capital investment and for
every employee in agriculture
requires a $500.000 investment.
Whose fault is it that farmers have
not informed their political friends of
the implications of abandoning
agriculture? Whose role is it to
communicate the vision and. thus. the
overall business plan? How did the
auto industry get $500 million and
why is it not proportionate to
agriculture'' We may perceive U.S.
and Brazil as competitors. but a
bigger challenge may be own our
local boardroom tables.
Whatever happened to the old
theory of creating a new dollar in the
economy? The old theory was that
primary manufacturing such as
agriculture. mining and forestry
created new wealth and a lot of
downstream jobs. The service jobs,
although good jobs, re -circulated the
same old dollar and only tried to add
a little value rather than create new
value. Often the adage of a lemon and
lemon juice are used as examples of
adding value - same ingredients -
different value. Let us not forget it
takes lemons to make lemon juice.
We are focusing on the trivia of
adding value when there is an
opportunity in "creating new wealth".
A lot of this new wealth can be
created by "getting better before
getting bigger". We cannot keep
producing without having an extra
cost for marketing the incremental
increases in production.
We cannot keep thinking that
another pig produced will get
consumed at the same price as the
last one. Do the overall downstream
values make up for the incremental
costs of marketing and how does one
share these costs and values?
Perth and Huron County Pork
Producer Associations have been
meeting to discuss the SWOT and
business interrelationships of their
industry. 1 applaud that there is a look
to the future in an organizing method.
Too often we whine and complain
(like this article) without stepping out
of the box and taking control of one's
own destiny. There is no "someone".
there is no "some time" and there is
"some way". if it is to he it will be up
to "us" and if not now. it is "when"
and if it is not how. then "why". The
challenges keep mounting and the
visioning process that Huron and
Perth are doing - is the closest to a
business plan that has ever
happened. 0
PERTH COUNTY PORK
PRODUCERS' PORK PRODUCTS
• Smoked Pork Chops • Fresh Pork Chops
• Stuffed Loin Chops • Smoked Sausage
• Smoked Cheddar Sausage • Bacon Burgers
• Teriyaki Pork Steaks • Vittorio's BBQ Sauce
AVAILABLE FROM:
Steve Hulshof (Kinkora) 348-8167
Walter Bosch (Monkton) 356-9000
Ted Keller (Mitchell) 348-9836
OCTOBER 2004 53